EAS Tests During Drive Time?

[Robert Bass]

Why in the world does KSCS schedule EAS tests for afternoon drive ??? They just did one this afternoon at 4:45 PM.

What the hell? Crying wolf during afternoon rush hour?

:

R

 

[CW]

Why in the world does KSCS schedule EAS tests for afternoon drive ??? They just did one this afternoon at 4:45 PM.

What the hell? Crying wolf during afternoon rush hour?

:

R

Well.............it shows they're being random with the test time??

 

[theshadow]

Why in the world does KSCS schedule EAS tests for afternoon drive ???
What the hell?

I have to agree with Mr. Bass on this one. I never could understand
why on God's green earth a station would schedule an EBS or EAS
test during morning or afternoon drive (especially morning - when
you want to RETAIN the listeners you have during
<<USUALLY>> the highest listenership part of the day). Not
have them tune out in droves by blasting them with duck f**ts
or nuclear holocaust red alerts!! Why not schedule these overnights??
You don't have to prove a Christmas tree can burn by setting it on fire.
It seems like that is what they are trying to do by testing during the
daytime. REAL WEATHER ALERTS ...yes...but tests....put that on
the graveyard!

 

[GumpyJumptooth]

This just in...the listeners of Sports Fan 990 have petitioned the station to replace Thom Bailey on The Press Box with the EAS test.

 

[Steve Eberhart]

Unless the rule has changed, and it very well might have, but my understanding is the EBS test had to be broadcast during 8am to 5pm...Monday thru Friday, once a week, per FCC reg's....

 

[Kent]

Unless the rule has changed, and it very well might have, but my understanding is the EBS test had to be broadcast during 8am to 5pm...Monday thru Friday, once a week, per FCC reg's....

I'm not sure about the RWT, but, at least in Missouri, the RMT alternates 12 hour periods between noon and midnight. So, if you air an RMT at 8 AM one month, you'll have to air it in the PM the next. It also is supposed to be distributed evenly among all dayparts. When I worked at an LP-1, we would be fired on the spot if we missed an RWT on the log, and those were also supposed to be distributed among all dayparts, including weekends. However, when I've worked at other stations, we always aired RWT's during the week when the full-time staff was on duty.

 

[radi0chik]

RWTs can be "scheduled" (usually by the traffic folks) anytime during the day/night. You're lucky to find traffic people who CAN/DO manage to schedule them regularly - from my experience. Monthly tests in this market originate from WBAP/KSCS at the times roughly scheduled by the TAB.

 

[Robert Bass]

My whole beef with this is, I seem to recall stations were to keep the tests out of morning and afternoon drive. Or at least that is what I remember reading from the NAB or TAB website???

It just seems silly to do in those slots. You could inadvertidly scare a potential motorist into having an accident, no?

R

 

[SPOCKRADIO]

I actually ran an eas around 9pm during winter and one at 5:15a,

 

[CW]

My whole beef with this is, I seem to recall stations were to keep the tests out of morning and afternoon drive. Or at least that is what I remember reading from the NAB or TAB website???

It just seems silly to do in those slots. You could inadvertidly scare a potential motorist into having an accident, no?

R

If the listener was listening, they would hear those famous words "THe following is a test of the Emergency Alert System" then the duck farts then "This has been a test of the Emergency Alert System"....personally I think it should be run during the day hours more often....that way people know what they sound like...(most hardly know what the duckfarts are for anyway!..unless you have a decoder).. I dont recall there ever being a ban on doing such during drive time.......The rules say randomly.....I can quote the exact words from Part 11 if you wish.

And Steve E, its has been a while since the EBS rules were in effect.....those days are gone....EAS rules now!
(I could show my age and say Conelrad...but how many would remember that!)

 

[Robert Bass]

That is assuming the station actually uses the "This is a test" in front of the header codes. For example, a station monitoring WBAP and relaying their RWT in automation, all you hear is a sudden interruption of the participating station's audio, then the header codes, then the "this is a test" line, then the EOM codes.

R

 

[jdean]

Yeah...but could you locate your authenticator codes?

 

[radi0chik]

That is assuming the station actually uses the "This is a test" in front of the header codes. For example, a station monitoring WBAP and relaying their RWT in automation, all you hear is a sudden interruption of the participating station's audio, then the header codes, then the "this is a test" line, then the EOM codes.

R

Stations do not forward RWTs from wbap, at least thats not the way they're supposed to work. The only tests that are forwarded are RMTs. Most stations have a cart (virtual or not) they can play with the "this is a test" lines on them. Most stations also opt out of doing that, choosing rather just to push the "weekly test" button when their traffic log schedules it.

 

[Robert Bass]

That is assuming the station actually uses the "This is a test" in front of the header codes. For example, a station monitoring WBAP and relaying their RWT in automation, all you hear is a sudden interruption of the participating station's audio, then the header codes, then the "this is a test" line, then the EOM codes.

R

Stations do not forward RWTs from wbap, at least thats not the way they're supposed to work. The only tests that are forwarded are RMTs. Most stations have a cart (virtual or not) they can play with the "this is a test" lines on them. Most stations also opt out of doing that, choosing rather just to push the "weekly test" button when their traffic log schedules it.

From the Texas State Plan, March 2004 Revision, page 19:

Scheduling: Each broadcast station and cable operator will have the option of deciding when to conduct its own weekly test or electing to carry a test transmitted by the local primary station it is assigned to monitor rather than initiating its own test. The latter may simplify compliance with the FCC requirement for some stations and cable operators.

http://www.tab.org/documents/emergency-systems/eas-texasplan.pdf

R

 

[Kent]

Stations do not forward RWTs from wbap, at least thats not the way they're supposed to work. The only tests that are forwarded are RMTs. Most stations have a cart (virtual or not) they can play with the "this is a test" lines on them. Most stations also opt out of doing that, choosing rather just to push the "weekly test" button when their traffic log schedules it.

Mostly correct. Stations do, however, have the option to carry the RWT originating from the local primary, at least in a few states. Most, though, use the RWT's from the local primaries to determine if their own EAS equipment is working and send their own at different time, especially given the high number of unattended stations these days. I've only worked at two LP's, but both of them were very strict on sending RWT's and trying to give each of their operators at least one over the course of a few months. They'd find out very quickly if you ever missed one as almost all of the other stations in the area would call the following Monday morning if they hadn't received an RWT from the prior week. Both were also quite strict on logging everything sent, even though it's not an FCC requirement. All operators kept an EAS log in addition to the transmitter log. At the end of your shift, you had to sign off that you didn't send any EAS alerts if you didn't. They were big on covering their rear ends as people would be quick to jump on you, as they should, if they didn't receive a tornado warning, and they wanted to make sure they could say, "We sent it, and we can prove it!"

I've worked at a few stations that had the RWT message put in the encoder. You still were asked to fire a cart with the opening message, but the optional middle message was sent automatically between the tones. When I've worked at stations that required manual sending of the messages, I'd usually just fire the opening message out of the stopset and air the header and EOM codes while skipping the middle message.

 

[Steve Eberhart]

Conelrad...oh yes! Anybody remember the car radios with the little "triangles" on the dial to indicate a "conelrad" station?

I recall a story about stations having to maintain conelrad transmitters in addition to their main and what an expense and pain it was since they essentially were only used for "tests" at the time, fortunately.

 

[radi0chik]

Conelrad...oh yes! Anybody remember the car radios with the little "triangles" on the dial to indicate a "conelrad" station?

Yup, my mom's 197x something Dodge Dart had that on its radio, which was AM only.

And speaking of Conelrad, while cleaning out part of our old transmitter building we came across a badly damaged record - but it had Conelrad logos on it and I wanted to see what was on it. Yeah, its scratchy but I thought it was pretty neat:

http://www.radi0chik.com/funstuff/mp3s/conelrad/

 

[Steve Eberhart]

those are cool! I remember a station I worked at once had the "we are leaving the air" announcements on a cart...we were always told not to touch it...but of course I did play it in cue just to see what it was...the cart was so old and dusty I don't think it would have ever actually played again....interesting times!

 

[KFodor]

The rules do say "randomly"...remote monthly tests are scheduled one time at night, the next during the day on an alternating basis. So, yes the monthlies and weekly tests if you're doing them according to the rules can occur during the daytime...even drive times.

You can't just "wish" them out of overnights, though I know a lot of PD's would like to.

Your other alternative: don't participate in EAS at all. It is, after all, a voluntary system.

 

[Robert Bass]

Your other alternative: don't participate in EAS at all. It is, after all, a voluntary system.

Not quite... The FCC says all stations must have the EAS equipment, etc...

R